General and administrative expenses for the quarter ended September 30, 2018 decreased by approximately $17,400 compared to the same quarter of 2017 primarily because of decreases in legal and professional services of approximately $29,600 and in printing and unitholder information expenses of approximately $3,200. These decreases were offset somewhat by an increase in the Escrow Agent/Trustee fees of approximately $15,400.
Compared to the previous quarter ended June 30, 2018, general and administrative expenses decreased approximately $54,000 primarily because of decreases due to the timing of payment of printing and unitholder information services of approximately $129,100 and payment of legal and professional fees of approximately $12,100. These decreases were offset somewhat by the timing of the annual payment of revenue processing services of approximately $84,200 and an increase in Escrow Agent/Trustee fees of approximately $3,300.
Administrative expenses increased approximately $87,200 for the nine months ended September 30, 2018 compared to the same time period in 2017 primarily due to increases in Escrow Agent/Trustee fees of approximately $65,500; legal and professional fees of approximately $4,900; the printing and unitholder information expenses of approximately $13,200; and transfer agent fees of approximately $3,500.
The financial statements of the Trust differ from financial statements prepared in conformity with accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America because of the following:
| • | | Royalty income is recognized in the month received rather than in the month of production. |
| • | | Expenses other than those expected to be paid on the following monthly record date are not accrued. |
| • | | Amortization of the Royalties is shown as a reduction to Trust corpus and not as a charge to operating results. |
| • | | Reserves may be established for contingencies that would not be recorded under accounting principles generally accepted in the United States of America. |
This comprehensive basis of accounting other than GAAP corresponds to the accounting permitted for royalty trusts by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, as specified by Staff Accounting Bulletin Topic 12:E,Financial Statements of Royalty Trusts.
Critical Accounting Policies and Estimates
A disclosure of critical accounting policies and the more significant judgments and estimates used in the preparation of the Trust’s financial statements is included in Item 7 of the Trust’s Annual Report on Form 10-K for the year ended December 31, 2017. There have been no significant changes to the critical accounting policies during the three months ended September 30, 2018.
Distributable Income per Unit
Basic distributable income per Unit is computed by dividing distributable income by the weighted average Units outstanding. Distributable income per Unit assuming dilution is computed by dividing distributable income by the weighted average number of Units and equivalent Units outstanding. The Trust had no equivalent Units outstanding for any period presented. Therefore, basic distributable income per Unit and distributable income per Unit assuming dilution are the same.
New Accounting Pronouncements
Revenue Recognition –In May 2014, the FASB issued updated guidance for recognizing revenue from contracts with customers. This update amends the existing accounting standards for revenue recognition and is based on the principle that revenue should be recognized to depict the transfer of goods and services to a customer at an amount that reflects the consideration a company expects to receive in exchange for those goods or services. The Trust has adopted this standards update, as required, beginning with the first quarter of 2018. The adoption of this standard has not had a significant impact on its financial statements due to the modified cash basis of reporting used by the Trust.
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